QM Kick Start: Coaching

So it feels like we just about covered all of the basics of a solid quality management program. Minus one very critical step. Coaching. If you are not closing the loop with feedback, and giving your team the tools they need to be successful, they will fail. This is the number one driver of attrition. Let’s face it, who wants to be in a job where they cannot be successful?

Coaching is not an optional function, even though it often is one of the first areas to get sacrificed when interaction volumes spike. You can’t hold agents to metrics and goals when there is no process to review feedback and best practices. A recommended coaching strategy is leveraging the SMART System for discussing feedback:

Specific – be clear with expectations

Measurable – define success with quantifiable goals

Attainable – Goals should be realistic in order for agents to take them seriously

Relevant – Coaching should relate to their day-to-day activities and what is important to the business

Time-bound – Set clear deadlines for improvement and hold them accountable

Now remember, operations teams are not the only teams that require feedback. Auditing your quality team is a great way to hold the quality team accountable and build credibility for your quality process, because the quality team is being held to high standards just like the agents. Objectives for the quality process should be established typically including accuracy, productivity, and consistency. These objectives should become part of the performance scorecard of the quality team. Accuracy can be measured by comparing survey scores with internal scores, or by using an appeal percentage to identify how often agents are disagreeing with scoring and how often the quality team should be accountable. Productivity can be measured with a metric such as how many calls the team can evaluate per hour. Consistency can be measured by examining the variance percentage in the quality scores that are seen during calibration. If the process is working, this variance should decrease over time.

Perfection is not expected, but improvement is not possible without providing visibility to metrics that matter, and delivering actionable feedback.

Chrissy is the Sr. Manager for WFO Product Management at Aspect, has been in the contact center industry for over 16 years, and has worked with various quality management platforms across her career. Previously she managed corporate quality, compliance, and reporting for one of the largest BPO’s. In her role, she created and implemented corporate processes surrounding quality and compliance, and worked with global teams to maintain governance. She also managed the collection and insurance licensing business. Previously, Christina held a variety of roles, including account director, client servicing, consultant, marketing manager, and quality manager.